Wednesday, August 3, 2005

German regulator checking for insider trading at DaimlerChrysler

Associated Press

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FRANKFURT, Germany -- Germany's financial services watchdog said Wednesday that it had opened a routine investigation into possible insider trading at DaimlerChrysler AG, focusing on dealing ahead of the announcement that CEO Juergen Schrempp was to retire.

Sabine Reimer, a spokeswoman for Berlin-based BaFin, said the probe was not limited to specific people or trades.

"We're looking into all the deals," she said, adding that the agency is making sure the company followed the guidelines for its obligations under stock exchange disclosure requires, or ad hoc rules.

A spokesman for DaimlerChrysler had no comment.

DaimlerChrysler stock opened around 36.50 euros ($44.59) on July 28, but began rising on reports that Schrempp was going to step down. By the time an official announcement was made after 10:30 a.m., it was at 39.35 euros ($48.07) a share, eventually surging more than 10 percent that day before closing at 39.49 euros ($48.24).

Shares of DaimlerChrysler were down 0.6 percent to 41.27 euros ($50.42) in Frankfurt trading on Wednesday.

The company named Dieter Zetsche, 52, who led the resurgence of the company's U.S. Chrysler Group, to replace Schrempp at the head of the world's fifth-largest carmaker at the beginning of next year.

On the Net:
http://www.daimlerchrysler.com